Rob Me Blind
by Touch of Grey
Summary: I'm digging my own grave here, but here's a Repo! The Genetic Opera/Teen Titans crossover. Enjoy.


For those who have never seen the movie Repo! The Genetic Opera, please be forewarned, it is sort of disgusting, in a beautiful way.

***

Leaning back from her wall of monitors, Ko groaned in disgust. She activated her Titan's com, sending out a Tower-wide pulse that was code for "Everyone, to me. _Now_.". Only once the entire gang (currently consisting of Red Devil, Blue Beetle, Traci 13, Miss Martian, Zatara, and Bombshell) had been assembled did Ko speak.

"Suit up, boys and girls, we have a Zydrate dealer on the loose." Seeing the blank stares, she sighed and began to explain. "Zydrate is a highly addictive painkiller taken mostly by those with surgery addictions. It is hard to find, hard to obtain, and expensive as hell, mainly because of its rarity. Can anyone tell me why this particular drug is so hard to find?" More blank staring. "Don't know? Then I shall tell you. The reason Zydrate is so hard to find, is because of how it is obtained."

"Let me take a stab at that." Eddie joked. "It's only found in the most ancient of Mayan temples. No! It's made of a rare plant found in the heart of the Amazon. Am I getting warm?" Ko smiled grimly.

"Not at all. Zydrate is made by distilling the brain fluid of corpses. It is then shot directly into a main vein or artery to obtain the high." Everyone's faces immediately contorted into looks of horror and disgust, Traci actually leaving the room to retch. Ko's smile got wider. "So if you want to track down the dealer, I'd start with the cemeteries."

Traci returned, wiping her mouth. "Is this an April Fools joke come early? Because I've fought zombies and dealt with all sorts of paranormal crap, but I've never heard of Zydrate. Usually, something that comes from dead people would be considered within my area of expertise." Ko cracked her knuckles, causing Traci to wince.

"Yeah, normally. But not now. Mainly because I think I may know who we're dealing with." Trying to lighten the mood slightly, Eddie asked,

"Dr. Frankenstein and Igor?"

"No, just the Graverobber. He's the only person I've ever known with the guts to harvest Zydrate, and the balls to sell it within my father's territory. I bet I could pinpoint him based on all the sale locations reported, just a second…" hunching over the desk, Ko's fingers flew rapidly on the keyboard and for two minutes, the sound of the clicking keys was the only noise in the room. Then Ko sat back. "There. The warehouse district. But in order to catch him in the act of shooting up some hopeless addict or, better yet, extracting the Zydrate, we'll need someone to go in there out of uniform." Finally over his initial shock, Zatara spoke up.

"Why can't we just pick him up on his way back from the morgue or something?"

"Graverobber has wormed his way out of prison more times than you've made your lovely assistant disappear. We need proof. We need to catch him in the middle of a transaction. So, any volunteers?"

Amy looked at Megan. Megan looked at Eddie. Eddie looked at Jaime. Jaime looked at Zatara. Zat looked at Traci. And Traci shook her head. "No way in hell." She thought a moment. "How do you even know this 'Graverobber' character, anyway, Ko?" Ko shrugged, rotating her shoulders to crack the joints at the same time, something that was much more complicated than it looked.

"He and my father cut a deal. I was used as an intermediary. Only time in my life I ever wore a corset without a dress on top of it…don't look at me like that. I haven't got my flute anymore. I have no powers. Stay back! What are you doing with that- noooooooooo!"

***

"I hate you all."

Three hours later, Amy and Traci had hog-tied Ko to a chair in order to properly dress her while Zatara did her makeup. The end result was Ko in a black vinyl top and a matching miniskirt, with her face contorted into an expression of pure, venomous hatred. Megan held up a long black coat, and Ko screeched in anger. "You went into my closet! You little green witch! When I get out of this chair I'm gonna-" Eddie shoved a spoonful of peanut butter into her mouth. "Mmph! Mmm! Pff! Mmhateyousomuch!"

Since she, as Ko had pointed out, had no powers of her own, the others drew straws to see who would be her "escort", and Zatara had lost. So, his hair magically dyed a white-hot blue and his usual tuxedo traded in for something a bit more…ragged, they were ready to go.

"You're going to be 'porting us to about three blocks from the warehouse, we'll walk the rest of the way. But you'd better shadow us! Zat, you have your camera on, right?" he adjusted one of the buttons on his coat.

"I do now."

"I'm dealing with the audio in my hairpin. Now, let's go get this sicko."

***

The warehouse district of San Francisco is not exactly what one could refer to as a "party spot". And yet, that was exactly what it seemed to have become. Men and women of every shape and size were standing around, waiting. Some had struck up conversations with each other, others had begun to tussle over money. Tensions were obviously high, and Ko gulped. Zat noticed this, nudging her.

"You going to be okay, Ko?" She nodded quickly.

"Yeah. Just leave the talking to me. Weird hair or not, you've got a pretty distinct voice. You might be recognized. So for all purposes, you're a mute. Got me?" Zat began to open his mouth, then shut it again and simply nodded.

Their heads jerked up as a screech of metal on metal sounded through the air. The door of a warehouse was opening.

He looked different from the last time she'd seen him. For one, his hair was longer, more coarse. He'd also acquired a new coat, longer than his last one. Ko wrapped her own coat tighter around her, shivering. The Graverobber looked around, admiring the size of his new flock, when his eyes landed on the two of them. Jumping down from his place on top of a stack of crates, he stalked over, ignoring all the addicts that attempted to plaster themselves to him. Planting her feet firmly on the floor, Ko willed her knees to steady themselves.

"Takabe." His voice was the low rumble of tombs opening in the dead of night, and a new shiver raced down her spine.

"Graverobber. You smell worse than last we met. Have you bathed at all in the last three years?" Her tone was one of cold steel, and Graverobber chuckled.

"Often, and with great relish. You haven't changed a bit, Takabe. Except…have you gotten shorter?" Her fist shot out, aiming for his head, but he caught it. "Still sore about how short you- is that my coat?" Zat's eyebrows shot to his hairline, and Ko flushed crimson.

"I had to wash it a dozen times to get the stench of corpses out, but it's a nice coat."

"It's too big on you."

"Like I care." They glared at each other, daring the other to look away. Graverobber glanced downward.

"I'm not in Takabe territory. What are you bothering me for?" Ko smirked.

"So you didn't hear? San Francisco is mine, now. Or have you just been scampering around like a rat all this time, selling wherever you won't get caught? The Takabe name is just as influential here as it is in Korea. Stop selling." Graverobber bent forward until his nose was almost touching hers, breath hot on her face.

"Are you threatening me?" Ko planted both hands on his chest, shoving him backwards.

"Yes, I am. Leave San Francisco tonight, or I will make sure that you never leave ever again." His mouth quirked upward.

"What if I offered you a cut?" Ko scowled in disgust.

"I am not my father, Graverobber. I will not be placated by a small cut of your overall profit. I want you out of my city. I want you out of my state. I want you out of my region. Or I will end you. Do you understand me?" He backed away from her, hands held up in mock-surrender.

"Fine. You want me gone? I'll be in the next Greyhound to Gotham. Tonight, even. I don't want to go up against you, Takabe. That's a fight I could never hope to win." He turned around, addressing the crowd. "Show's over! I'm tapped! Go home!" The sound of darkened muttering filled the air as the assemblage of junkies dispersed into the night. "Happy?"

"Ecstatic." Graverobber sighed.

"And you used to be such a cute kid, too. Are you sure I can't tempt you with," he held up a tiny glowing vial. "Hmm?"

"Get that out of my face! Get the hell out of my city! And never come back! Go!" Sarcastically tipping an invisible hat her way, Graverobber turned and left without another word. As soon as he was out of range, Ko sank to her knees, gasping erratically and clutching her chest. Zat's eyes widened and a portal opened up, Eddie shooting through it.

"Ko, are you okay?! Did that guy do something to you?! Why did you let him go?" Finally seeming to get her breath back, Ko straightened up.

"When I was 14, the Graverobber came to the compound. He'd asked around, and everywhere he went said that unless he cut a deal with my father, he'd be killed for selling in his territory. I was the intermediary, as my father was too big and important to meet with a lowly Zydrate pusher. I was young, and very stupid. He was kind to me, never made a pass at me. He gave me his coat and a kiss on the forehead and left to peddle his ill-gotten wares. I thought I was in love." Her face darkened. "And then I did a web search on Zydrate. I discovered what it was, how it was obtained. I was disgusted, with both him and myself. How could someone so kind do something so horrible? I'd assumed that Graverobber was a nom de plume, not a job description. But I kept his coat, because I was young, and stupid, and very much in love. This never leaves the three of us. Graverobber recognized Zatara and escaped. We never spoke with him. If the others find out about this, I will kill you both." Eddie's eyes cleared, his confusion gone.

"You were never planning on capturing him. You were never planning on sending anyone but the three of us to round him up. You tricked the entire team into letting him escape." He was silent a moment. "I'll never tell a soul." Zatara nodded.

"I'll keep my mouth shut as well. But what about the camera? The audio hairpin?"

"They don't work. I never turned them on. No one will know." She looked in the direction Graverobber had gone in. "Open up a portal, Eddie. Take us home. I am very tired." He opened a portal, stepping away to let them through, then closed it behind himself. None of them noticed the ghostly white figure in the long coat, smiling to himself in the shadow of a warehouse.

Fini

Okay, just lemme get my blindfold and cigarette, and we can go off to the execution. Mixing Repo and the Teen Titans may not have been the best of ideas, but I had fun writing it, so whatcha gonna do about it? Review, if you please!


End file.
